Persistent Faith * Dutch Sheets * GiveHIM15 * 12/27/2023

[ronscarpa]

• • 3 min read       https://www.givehim15.com/post/december-27-2023

December 27, 2023

 

Persistent Faith

 

 

 

"For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet: The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter. But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs. And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs. And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter. And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed." (Mark 7:25-30 KJV)

 

 

 

From Dad’s Devotional

 

“Nowhere in the gospels do we have a grander example of persistent, yet humble, faith which secures God's blessings. This woman had naked faith—faith stripped of all emotion. She persisted, even though there was no inrush of excitement, having come to Christ on behalf of a demon-possessed daughter. And she turned four obstacles into stepping stones.

 

 

“Silence: What a paradox. Jesus stated that the woman had great faith, yet according to Matthew’s account of this story, He initially answered her with not a word. It is so important that we keep believing, that we persevere with patience. God has heard, and faith forces are at work. Too often, His answer comes but finds us gone. Our ship comes in, but there is no one to unload it!

 

 

“Lack of Sympathy: Also in Matthew's account, we’re told the Lord's disciples came to Him, saying, ‘Send her away’ (Matthew 15:23). This calloused response would be enough to discourage most.

 

 

“Race: This woman was a Gentile and, at this time, had no claim on Jesus. She met this obstacle with the cry, ‘Lord, help me’ (Matthew 15:25). What faith! She worshipped Jesus and called Him Lord. Thus, we are given proof that neither race nor nationality can keep a person from God. Her appeal became one for mercy and grace.

 

 

“Open Rebuff: Jesus essentially said to her, ‘It wouldn't be right to take the children's bread and give it to the dogs.’ Again, she had the right answer: ‘Just give me some crumbs.’ That was enough for Jesus. The whole encounter suddenly exploded into her miracle!

 

 

“Please see that the prayer of faith is not compelling a reluctant Lord but laying hold of His willingness. Great faith sees a light at the end of the tunnel yet to be built. It is also the impetus for our miracle - not the reverse. ‘By faith, the walls of Jericho fell down’ (Hebrews 11:30). Not by the shout - the shout was the result of the faith.”

 

 

 

Dutch Shares from How to Pray For Lost Loved Ones

 

"If there is not a deep, settled faith in you for the salvation of the one for whom you are praying - or anything else for that matter - please don't be intimidated. Your faith simply needs to grow. The Bible compares faith to a mustard seed. However, Jesus did not tell us we need faith the size of a mustard seed, though some translations mistakenly do so, but like a mustard seed. The point of Jesus' mustard seed parable is that faith begins as a tiny seed but grows into a tree."(1)

 

 

 

Pray with me:

 

Father, thank You for including this story of the Syrophenician woman in Your great Book. Her persistent faith and ability to see through the tests thrown her way are beyond inspiring; they are instructing. Somehow, she knew. She knew this Man was not a racist or mean-spirited. She understood that she was not compelling a reluctant Lord, but laying hold of His willingness.

 

Teach us not to be moved when You have not yet spoken. Your Word speaks loudly, and we will wait for further instruction from Holy Spirit, as long as it takes.

 

We know that through faith and patience, we inherit the promises.

 

We will not be deterred by callous words, religious actions, or unbiblical attitudes of others. We will persevere, knowing that You are not ruled by such carnal mindsets. We will never bow to racism, for we are lovers of all people everywhere.

 

Our faith is growing from the size you measured to each of us, into a strong and fruit-bearing tree. We are feeding it daily on Your Word, and our faith is continuously growing. We will not waiver; we will never give up. Our nation will be saved, earthshaking revival has already begun, and its full manifestation is imminent. Earth’s greatest harvest will not be stopped.

 

 

Our decree:

 

We decree that just like this faith-filled lady in Scripture, we will persevere and receive our promised breakthrough. 

 

 

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Click on the link below to watch the full video.

 

 

 

 

 

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1. Dutch Sheets, How to Pray for Lost Loved Ones, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Publishing Group), p. 20.

[Sage449]

Amen and amen.